The Bleak Heart of the Traveler
by Miss Femm
Summary: As his Cagliostro adventure comes to a close, Lupin is haunted by Lady Clarisse and all she represents.


The Bleak Heart of the Traveler

_"__You know, you could always go back…"_

It was unthinkable, almost comical. Lupin the Third, world-famous thief and notorious womanizer, found himself unable to wrench a teenaged girl from his mind.

Lady Clarisse, brave young woman, heir to the Cagliostro throne.

_Beautiful in her damp wedding dress, auburn head beneath his neck, delicate hands curled against his chest, her sweet voice pleading._

_"__Please, take me with you!"_

_"__Please, I—I want to be with you, my thief!"_

It had been hard not to return the clinch, to avoid her expectant lips and plant a platonic kiss upon the forehead. But he did not doubt for a moment that he had done right by letting her go. She was only eighteen, after all; too young to be mixed up with a man on the cusp of middle age and much too good to pursue such a life as his.

The wanderer's life… another chase… another heist… another treasure to pursue…

And no escape from any of it.

But did he really want to escape? How could he even think of such a thing? The thief's life had served him well, providing challenge and all sorts of hedonistic pleasures. Lupin had lived anchorless and free, in the good times and in the not-so-good times; he would not have had it any other way.

Would he?

He was Lupin the Third. What could make him wish to be anyone else, even for a moment? Were the law not constantly on his tail, would he have chosen to remain with the princess and live as a much older consort? A large castle in a fairy tale kingdom, immense wealth, a pretty young woman to share it with—all material comforts, and tempting ones at that. It was a silly image right out of an old-fashioned romance novel, the princess and the thief. He found it hard to believe he would last long in such confinement, even gilded confinement like that.

So what made him question his life?

Her eyes?

Lupin, being the experienced ladies' man, had looked into hundreds of eyes and seen a plethora of emotions gazing back: reciprocated lust, bemusement, disgust, irritation. Clarisse's eyes exuded such an innocence, a sense of genuineness not often found in the world of international crime. It was refreshing. It was comforting to know it even existed.

It was interesting for him to realize how even though Clarisse was beautiful, his efforts to rescue her had not been born with any hope of a sexual reward. No doubt she would have been inexperienced in such carnal matters, though that had never stopped him from making similar conquests in his youth. No, she was something else entirely…

A road not taken?

Lupin was a few years shy of forty at this point. Over all that time, he had nabbed many a treasure, fought many a fight, bedded many a lovely lady. What else was there, though? Where else to go after? What other roads were available to him now, after all this time? Nothing lasts forever. Surely even these chases and heists would lost their charm with the passing of a few more years. It almost felt as though their luster were wearing thin, even now. It was terrifying to even think on.

Staring pensive and grim at the viridian blur rushing past the Fiat window, Lupin would have remained in such a haze for God knows how long—were it not for one thing.

"Hey! Check out what I scored before the printing press went up in flames!"

The counterfeit plates gleaming under Fujiko's arm in the Mediterranean sunlight…

They could give him no answer. They could offer little solace. But they were enough for now.

With the best effort he could muster, Lupin shook every melancholy thought from the forefront of his mind and stretched that old goofy grin across his face. The principality of Cagliostro retreated farther and farther into the distance.

**A/N: I have always been intrigued by Hayao Miyazaki's notion of Lupin in ****_The Castle of_****_Cagliostro_**** as a man in the twilight of his career. In fact, I love the amount of differing interpretations of the Lupin characters there are; it keeps that universe interesting and fresh, at least in my opinion. This piece was also inspired by freelance writer Daniel Thomas MacInnes' interpretation of Lupin in this film, as a man who sees the princess as a symbol of what his life might have been. So a special thanks to him!**


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